A doctor who ran the health center of the Court of Justice in Roraima has been exonerated from his post for irregularly administering Covid-19 vaccines within the institution. According to accusations which are the subject of an internal investigation, these vaccines have been diverted from Operation Welcome, a task force that serves Venezuelan refugees in Brazil.
In addition to being an employee of TJ, Mariângela Nasário Andrade was also a member of Operation Welcome, where she coordinated the field hospital set up during the pandemic. Known as Dr. Mari, she accompanied General Antônio Manoel de Barros, Operation Commander, in various demonstrations and meetings. The program is a joint action of the Army, the federal government and humanitarian organizations at the border.
In June of this year, Andrade received the Medal of Merit from the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the State of Roraima. In 2017, he received the Pride of Roraima Commendation from the Legislative Assembly, awarded to people considered a “symbol and benchmark for the locals.”
Andrade was exonerated from the post of Coordinator of the Medical and Quality of Life Center of the Court of Justice on the 13th. The TJ confirmed to Folha that there was an irregular application of vaccines in the establishment and that it was the reason for the dismissal of the official. . According to the agency, the request took place on July 12 and 13.
“As soon as he became aware of the unauthorized and irregular actions on his premises, his immediate interruption was noted,” said the statement sent to the journalist. According to the note, she “acted on her own initiative and in defiance of the legislation in force”.
The TJ did not, however, inform who received the vaccines applied at the site. According to the charges, the vaccination agents could have been applied to the judges, which the Association of Magistrates of Roraima denies.
The note from the Court of Justice also clarifies that the youngest state judge is 32 years old, while the general vaccination of 12 and 13 in Boa Vista already included a lower age group: people from 26 to 31 years old.
People heard by the report who know people involved in the case, however, raise the possibility that the irregular request took place before that date. When questioned, the TJ said it had not received any report indicating that this had happened and added that “there has never been a request or authorization for Covid to be vaccinated on the premises of the Court at whatever date “.
Folha called and sent messages to Mariângela Andrade’s cellphone this Wednesday (21) in the afternoon, but did not receive an answer until the publication of this report.
The TJ claims to have requested measures from the General Court of Justice, the Attorney General of Justice and the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF), after having also informed the National Council of Justice. Roraima’s MPF confirmed to Folha that he had received the complaint and says he is in a phase of preliminary analysis of what happened.
After Andrade, other commissioned servers were made redundant. According to the TJ, this was due to a restructuring of the team due to the appointment of a new coordinator, and not to their involvement in irregularities.
Venezuelans who enter the country and go to Operation Welcome posts in Pacaraima are immune to Covid. After more than a year of the border being closed due to the pandemic, the entry of refugees of this nationality was again allowed on June 23, albeit in limited numbers – 50 first per day, now 300 .
Operation Welcoming said it has so far found no illegalities related to vaccination and added that it works “always in accordance with the principles of legality and legitimacy”.
Regarding Andrade’s link to the operation, it was reported that the working group is working in cooperation with more than 120 institutions, including the TJ and the Roraima Public Prosecutor’s Office, in which she worked as a expert doctor.
This Tuesday (20), Senator Telmário Mota (PROS-RR) released a video claiming that he had received a complaint regarding the application of vaccines diverted from Operation Welcomed by state judges. “If that’s true, why only fire the little ones? Magistrates will they not be penalized? They must be penalized, no one is above the law, ”he said.
Mota sent letters seeking clarification from General Barros and the prosecution, but had received no response until the publication of this report.